Does Nicholas take after his Great Grandfather?

My husband's grandfather was a HUGE Railfan. He passed away when Bryan was around 14, so I never got the opportunity to meet him. But a part of me feels that I have met a part of him...a part of him that is in Nicholas. And there have been times that I have never felt closer to him.

He did a lot of model railroading and spent a lot of time walking train tracks. His favorite train was a 4-8-4 (not sure if he had a particular one he liked though). Bryan remembers walking tracks with his grandfather as a child and also remembers playing with electric trains on the living room floor. We regularly chase a local steam locomotive, the SF3751 (which you will see lots of in this blog) which also happens to be a 4-8-4.

So, you can see why we think there is a little bit of Bryan's grandpa showing up in Nicholas :)









The pictures in this post is an experience I'll never forget. We were at the Winter Photoshoot at the Nevada Northern Railway in Ely, Nevada. It was day 2 of the photoshoot and there was a storm coming and the light was coming and going and not cooperating very well. I was about to give up and the clouds sort of parted and streaks of light came through. Thoughts were going through my head of "is this really going to happen..." I was grinning from ear to ear as I was snapping pictures. Chills were repetitively going down my spine. My arms were continually getting goosebumps. It was amazing. All I could think about was his Grandfather...even though I had never met him. As soon as I was in the hotel room that night, I had to show my husband the photos and tell him of what I felt. I actually was feeling a bit guilty that he was not out there and able to feel what I did and see what I did. Words can not describe it.